2022 General Standards Handbook (GSH) and Crop Insurance Handbook (CIH) Changes and Clarifications

Below are a few of the changes for the 2022 Crop Year outlined in the General Standards Handbook (GSH) and Crop Insurance Handbook (CIH). This is not an all-encompassing list, so please take time to become familiar with all of the language changes in the handbooks.

General Standards Handbook

  • Joint Venture Clarification – Joint ventures between two individuals that are married individuals:
    > WITH AN EIN must be reported as an individual-operating as a business person type.
    > WITHOUT AN EIN using one of the spouse’s SSN as an ID number, must be reported as individual-married (spousal) person type.
  • Veteran Farmer and Rancher (VFR) Qualification Clarification – A spouse’s veteran status does not impact whether an individual or legal entity, comprised of individual and spouse, is considered a veteran farmer or rancher.
  • Enterprise Unit Changes – Added ET (Enterprise Unit by Type) and changed EP to EI (Enterprise Unit by Irrigation Practice)
  • Dual Elections/Participation Disallowed
    > Supplemental Coverage Option (SCO) and Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX) coverage on the same crop acreage
    > Enrollment in Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) or Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and STAX on the same acreage/FN(s) of the crop
    > Election of ARC and SCO on the same acreage/FN(s) of the crop
    NOTE: If ARC has been elected on acreage/FN(s), the same acreage/FN(s) of the crop are ineligible for SCO coverage regardless of ARC enrollment status
    > Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and any crop insurance program on the same acreage

Crop Insurance Handbook (CIH)

  • Added enterprise unit structure with ET option code (enterprise unit by type), as applicable.
  • Multi-County Enterprise Unit (MCEU) is not available for enterprise units by type.
  • Electing enterprise unit by irrigation practice from EP unit structure code to EU unit structure with EI option code procedure was updated.
  • Removed EP and EC from the list of unit structure codes. They are no longer available and have been replaced by EU unit structure code with EI or EC option code.
  • Clarified ARC and SCO cannot be elected on the same acreage/FN(s).
  • Beginning Farmer and Rancher (BFR) or Veteran Farmer and Rancher (VFR) – Clarified when using another person’s production history, not all years of actual / assigned yields must be transferred, but the years transferred must start with the most recent year. When continuity is broken, prior actual / assigned yields cannot be used.
  • BFR or VFR – A BFR or VFR can only use another person’s production history for a crop that the BFR or VFR was previously involved in. Clarified the involvement of the crop can be from any farming or ranching operation, not just the operation the production history is being transferred from.